Return to England

In the first part of October we received the news that Colin's English grandmother had passed away. We were sad for her passing, but also felt grateful that we had been able to see her during the summer. We joined Colin's parents, and the rest of the English family for her funeral service. The service was beautiful, and full of memories. It was touching to hear stories from Gran's life. The passing of a loved one often causes us to think about life and death, and I feel grateful for the hope we have through Christ to live again. It is comforting and inspiring to imagine our loved ones crossing into the next life and embracing those who have gone before them. We sang a hymn in the church to say goodbye to Gran and I think we all felt that while she would be missed on earth, she was being welcomed home by her husband and daughter.

Although we were brought together by sad circumstances, it was really special to spend a couple of days with Colin's parents, aunts and uncles, and cousins. The only one missing was Ross. We had the chance to spend an afternoon with Rachel and Steve at Kew Gardens. It was proper British weather with occasional blustering winds, cold humid air, and grey skys. The Gardens were beautiful though. My favorite area was the tropical (read heated) indoor garden.

In this picture we are on the "Tree Walk," which is a bridge that winds through the trees about 60 feet above the ground. 

We stayed in Lynn and Hugh's home, and we had a great time. We especially enjoyed seeing how the older brother- younger brother dynamic between Hugh and John played out. John always seems very responsible, organized and mature when we are with him (or perhaps it just seems that way because we are his children), but around Hugh that seemed to fade away a bit and he reminded us of Ross. John was more carefree, expectant that things would just get done, and less worried about getting caught sneaking a sausage before lunch. It made us smile to see the two of them together and also made me think that no matter how much time passes, we maintain some part of our identity as a younger or older sibling. Here's to hoping that my younger siblings still take orders from me in 10, 15 and 20 years :) 

We spent an evening or two in front of the fire playing cards, and enjoying British cheese between rounds. We also went to a local pub with Hugh and Lynn. It was my first time trying Yorkshire pudding, and it was delicious. Through the grey haze outside we could see a rugby pitch from our table. Dried hops were hung around the pub, and of course, a real fire warmed the entire toom. Perfect. We loved spending the weekend with family. 

After a weekend of reflecting on and honoring Gran's life, and bonding with the family we hopped on a plane back to Spain. In typical down-to-the-minute Taylor fashion, we both got off the airplane and went straight to work with our weekend backpacks, and very little sleep. Our trip to England rounded out a very busy October in which we traveled 3/4 of the weekends. We felt blessed to be able to do so much, and ready to spend some time relaxing at home.